A story from my backyard in Jerusalem reminded me that the labels dividing us are not always the deepest truth about the Jewish people.

Living in Jerusalem means living in very close proximity to your neighbors. With nearly one million people crowded into a city built for perhaps 100,000 residents, it sometimes feels a little too close for comfort.

Our houses are separated by trees, bushes, and maybe a shared stone retaining wall. You can’t always see one another, but you hear everything: children laughing, dogs barking, and, of course, Friday night singing.

Jerusalem is also not famous for relaxed building regulations either. Around here, it sometimes feels like replacing a light fixture requires three permits and a committee meeting. Which is why, while we were rebuilding our backyard deck this summer, I became mildly obsessed with one question:

Was it actually legal?

Before construction began, I checked with a lawyer, who assured me we didn’t need municipal approval. I believed him, for the most part.

Still, I couldn’t completely shake the fear that something might go wrong. Part of the reason lived just beyond the hedge.

I had never met our next-door neighbor, but I knew who he was. He’s one of Israel’s best-known former State Attorneys. If my lawyer had somehow gotten this wrong, I wasn’t optimistic about my chances of survival.

But before I ever met him, something happened on that deck that reminded me why there is simply no place on earth quite........

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